Material handling apparatus



March 11, 1941. c. 1.. SLUYTER MATERIAL HANDLING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 14, 1938 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 MIME W70 6; L. 52 uyrm 3M WM MATERIAL HANDLING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 14, 1958 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 &

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IIVVENTOR 62 L 5L UYTER BY 5 WM,

A TTOR/Vf March 11, 19-41. 0. L. sLuY'TER MATERIAL HANDLING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 14, 1938 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 U HI IH Wl I lH l l l l h Hl lHHl lH M/Vf/VTOI? 56'; 1.5207727? 5) afm W7 A 770mm Patented Mar. 11, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT "OFFICE MATERIAL HANDLING APPARATUS Application September 14, 1938, Serial No. 229,923

6 Claims.

This invention relates to material handling apparatus and more particularly to car-loading apparatus.

It is an object of the present invention to simplify and mechanize the handling of material.

In accordance with one embodiment of the invention, a car-loading apparatus is provided for loading heavy articles into box cars, comprising a load-supporting trolley movable on a monorail system, composed of a plurality of interconnected elements, the terminal element being in the form of a boom, whereby the material being handled may be directed to the desired position in the car, said boom being mounted on a Wheeled framework which may be moved to any one of a plurality of positions in a box car and braced in position. The sections of monorail are removable so that upon removal of the sections of monorail one at a time, all of the interior of the car is brought within the range of the boom on the carriage. A reversible carriage carrying an interconnecting section of monorail is provided for use adjacent the door of the car, whereby the material being handled may be loaded in the car and stacked therein from the ends thereof to the center and when the ends of the car are loaded, the center portion may be loaded by removing the reversible carriage and connecting the boom supporting carriage adjacent the door of the car.

Other objects and advantages of the-invention will be more apparent from the following detailed description when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein Fig. 1 is a plan view of a box car, the sides being broken away to more clearly illustrate the material handling apparatus positioned therein;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged side elevational view of the terminal of the monorail system and the wheeled carriage or support therefor taken substantially along the line 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged side elevational view, taken substantially along the line 33 of Fig. 1 in the direction of the arrows, showing'the reversible carriage;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary elevational view taken along the line 44 of Fig. 1 in the direction of the arrows on a larger scale than Fig.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary elevational view taken along the line 5-5 of Fig. 1 in the direction of the arrows on the same scale as Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken along the line 6-8 of Fig. 4 in the'direction of the arrows, and

Fig. 7 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view-taken along the'line l of Fig. 1 in the direction of the arrows.

Referring to the drawings, wherein like reference characters designate the same, parts throughout the several views, the numeral l0 designates generally "the side 'and end walls of a box car having afloor ll, shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, and a roof l2,shown in dot and dash'lines in Fig. 5. The present invention is adapted to cooperate with a monorail system, shown in dot and dash lines at I3 (Fig. 1), whereby articles to be shipped are carried by means of a trolley 14 and a block'and tackle l5 to a box car for shipment. As will be apparent, the material to be stacked in the box car may be transported over the monorail system l3 to the entrance of the box car. The present invention relates to mechanism for handling the material between the end of the monorail system I3 and the various interior portions of the box car and includes three major portions, designated generally by the numerals l6, l1 and I8.

The portion of the material handling apparatus designated generally bythe numeral l6 comprises a rail l9 (Figs. 1 and'l) having slidably mounted thereon a clamp plate v2|), which may be shifted longitudinally of the rail IS. The plate 20 has suitably fixed thereto a tubular member 22 having a pair of pins'23'fixed therein for engaging in slots 2|2l forr'ne'd'in the ends of a pair of steel'pipes 24. The pipes 24 are provided with internal threads for receiving externally threaded tubes '25, having rotatably mounted on their extending ends a door-postengaging member 2B and having an actuating rod 21 extending therethrou'gh whereby'the tube 25 may be rotated with respect toits associated pipe 24 to wedge the section of rail [9 in position in the door of a freight car, after the section l9 has been connected to the'main monorail system I3 and the handling apparatus to be described hereinafter.

A locking mechanism, designated generally by the numeral 35, is mounted on the rail 19 for se curing the rail 19 to the end rail of themonorail system l3. There are a number of these locking mechanisms 35, all of exactly the same construction, used throughout'th'e apparatus-one of them being shown i'n detail in Figs. 4 and 6. The locking mechanism 35 comprises a clevis plate 36 welded to the upper surface of one section of monorail adjacent its end and having upwardly bent ends 3"! and 38 for preventing a clevis 39 from slipping off the plate 36. The

section 62.

clevis 39 is formed to surround the clevis plate 36 and to engage the underside of the top'flange of the monorail section, upon which it is mounted. The clevis 39 may be moved along the plate 36, which extends out over the adjoining section of monorail to lock the two sections in position after they have been joined together by means of the dovetail configuration of the abutting sections, as shown at 40 (Fig.6). A clevis plate 36 and clevis 39 are mounted on one end of the rail I9 and other similar rails and after two rails have been placed in abutting relation with the dovetails thereon interlocked, the clevis 39 may be moved to the free end of the clevis plate, thereby to lock two sections of rail togetherf I 1 Connected to the section of railil9- is a curved section of rail 44 which is locked'to therail l 9 by one of the locking mechanisms 3 5.and-which is mounted on the underside of the flanges of a pair of channel members 45 and 46. nel members 45 and 46, together with a channel member 41, form a triangular framework, secured, by means of gusset plates 43-48, tofupwardly extending. channel members 49 49. and 59e-50, each pairofchannel members 49 and constituting a leg of the reversible portion I'lof the apparatus. As will be noted by reference to Figs. 1 and3, the gusset plates 48 are substantial- 1y triangularin shape and extend along the, web ofv the channelmembers 45, 46 and 41 and between the webs of the channel members 49 and 50. The gusset plates, at their abutting edges, are securedtogether; for example, by welding, and are also secured. to the channel members 49 and 56 in any suitable manner; for example, by welding. It will also be noted, by reference to Figs. land 3, that the channel members 49 and 50 are spaced apart at their upper ends by the thickness of the gusset plates, which are interposed between them and. are joined together at theirlower ends to receive brackets 5|. The brackets 5| "arerig'idly secured 'to'the legs of the framework comprising the channel members 49 and 50 and are threaded at 52 to receive thecaster adjusting screw 53. The caster adjusting screw is rotatably mounted in a caster. support 54, slidable upon the outer flanges of the channelmembers and carry casters 55, whereby the entire framework may be rolled into "any desired position with the framework and'casters in the position'shown in Fig. 3

and after .reaching that position, the 'entire' framework may be "lowered by manipulating the screws 53. I

At .the beginning of a loading operation, that is, when articles are being loaded in the) end of, a boxcar, a short section of rail 62 is connecte'dlto theend of the curved section 44 by means of the locking mechanism 35 mounted'on one end of the This short section of'rail'is joined to a second and somewhat longer sectionof rail 63, which also carries a locking mechanism whereby it is locked, to the section 62, and the section 63 is dovetailed for connection to a carriagesupported rail 64. Other rail sections may be connected between the sections 62 and 63 so that the entire area of the box car comes-within the range of the apparatus when larger ears. than V the one shownare being loaded.

The'carriage supported rail 64 forms a part of the portion 18 0f the apparatus and is secured (Figs. 2, 4 and 6) to the underside of an I-beam 65, which serves to support'a pair of hinge plates 66 and 61. These hingeplates may be secured. to the I -bejam 65-; in any -suitable manner; and in he; ese t embsl ime o t e t o he.

The chana pair of standards comprised of interconnected T-beams H and 12. These T-beams are, in the present embodiment of the invention, welded together throughout a substantial part of their length, as shown in Fig. 2, and are then bent apart at their lower ends to form a framework on cent, the,upp.er ends thereof and at their, inner;

ends are provided with clamps 82 and 8 3, respectively, which surround thespindlefiQ and. serve to position the bearing ,68. A strengthening member in the. formpf a channel member. is

bolted to the .I-beam 65. and extends out over the r m 2-. his chann l m m e ,4. has. a, strap, fixed to it at its outer ends and the strap 15 passes upwardlyover,'the topof the I -bearn 65 and is secured to it by means of the'bolts 16. ;Ana

other set of bolts. Tl pass 'throughthe lowerflanges of the I-bcam 65 and serve. to secure the. left end ofthe carriage ,supported rail. to the I-beam 65." Whenthe carriage supported rail is in theposition shownin. full lines in l the outer endsof the channelmemberfl are bolted. to a pair of support plates '64.: These support a e e in n. r i 1..exam b welding, to the edges of the webs of the, T. -bcams' d ia e he' i e dfiF s- 4 o the carriage supported-rail 64,13, strengthening web 65fis secured to the lower hingeplate 61 and the rail '64 in any suitable-manner; for example,"

by weldingit tothem, 7 4

Extending throl gh the ihingei'plates 66 and fi'l andthrough a pair of apertures 96 and 9| formed in the upper'f and lower flanges of anI-beam 92,

is a kingbolt 93 Free hingedly supporting the I beam 92 on the' I-beam 65; the I beams65 and92 being formed, as'shownla't-"flli '(Fig. 6-), ta permit rotation of one with respe'ctto theothefrg Fixed to one 'oftheT- beams 12; for examplegby weldn ing, is a gusset plate 94 on which are mounted v a pair of angle members and 96, which slid' ably support a channel member 91'," having bolts 98 passingthrough slots 99 therein The channel memberfil may be moved jto positio whei'e t e n e i 'e a fii te u ro titt mwrarily ,in horizontalposition. until the channel it}. is bolted to the'support plates '34, .f-Tllemhannell member 9! is then moved out of the. path of. the trolley soitkcan be movedto theput er endof theboom 106. 4 L f Secured to the. undersideof the l-beam are. a pair of channel members I05, which, in the pres ent embodiment of the invention are welded to the -b em anq' n n, r d.-to mu H t. constituting a boom for supporting the trolley; l4 and which may be swung with the channel mem'. e s, I05 and a ebeam 92550: t at articles ri by- :t e tro ley; m y be: r c ed to the sides 10f the; 7

84 and the T-beams II and I2 and communicating with the aperture I09 to engage. in a cooperating slot II3 formed in a'tubular member II I forming a part of the telescoping brace. An externally threaded member 2 is provided for threadedly engaging the tubular member I I I and may be adjusted similarly to the tube 25 to move a wall-engaging member II 4 into engagement with the walls of the box car. In this manner, the carriage portion I8 of the apparatus may be braced between the side walls of the box car and rigidly held in place.

Cooperating with the telescoping braces I08 to rigidly secure the portion I8 of the apparatus in the box car are a pair of vertically slidable braces I I1, one of which is mounted upon each of the pairs of T-beams II and 12. As is most clearly shown in Fig. 5, the brace II! is provided with a series of teeth II8 adapted to be engaged by a pawl H9 mounted upon the joined-together portions of the T-beams II and 12 by means of a bracket I20, which is fixed to the T-beams and is provided with a vertically extending passage I2I for slidably receiving the brace II I. The pawl H9 is mounted upon a pivot I22 and is normally urged into engagement with the teeth II8 by a leaf spring I23. It will thus be apparent that after the portion I8 of the apparatus has been placed in position in the box car, it may be braced in that position by braces I08 and 7, which may be moved into engagement with the walls and roof, respectively, of the car. The T-beams II and 12 have a pair of straps I26 for receiving the side braces I08 when the braces are not in use and similar straps I 21 are mounted on one pair of the channel members 49 and 50 for receiving the door braces when they are not in use.

It is believed that the advantages of the invention will be more apparent from the following brief description of the method of using the apparatus to load box cars. The portion I8 of the apparatus, which is normally stored with the rails 64 and I06, in the position shown in dot and dash lines in Fig, 4, with the braces III, as shown in solid lines, and with the braces I08 hung on the straps I26, may be rolled on the casters into position adjacent the end of a box car and the portion I! of the apparatus may then be moved to the center portion of the box car. After these two portions of the apparatus are in position, the rail I9 may be attached to the rail I 3 by means of the locking mechanism 35, Whereupon the rail I9 may be locked in position in the door by means of the braces or wedging members, after which the rail I9 may be connected by the locking mechanism 35 to the rail 44 in the position shown, wherein the portion I! of the apparatus is so positioned as to direct articles over the rail 44 to the right end of the box car, as shown in full lines in Fig. 1. The rails 62, 63 and 64 may then be locked together by means of their locking mechanisms 35 and after the rails are thus in position, the braces I08 may be placed in position and manipulated to brace the portion I8 of theapparatus against the sides of the car and the braces 'I I! may be .movedinto engagement with the roof of the car, thereby to hold the portion I8 steady in the box car.

Material to be stowed in the car may then be transported over the monorail system I3 and then across the rails I9, 44, 62, .63 and I06 and deposited .in the desired places in the end ofthe car. After the extreme right end of the car has been thus loaded, (Fig. 1) the rail 63 may be removed and the portion. :of the apparatus I8 moved back into a position where the rail 64 is connected directly to the rail 62 and after the areaof the car within 'therange of the rail I06 has been loaded, the rail 62 may be removed and the rail 64 connected directly to the rail 44. After the area of the car within the range of the rail I 66 in this position has been loaded, the portion I 8 of the. apparatus may be moved to the extreme left end-of the car (not shown) and the portion II reversed to the position shown in dot and dash lines, whereupon the left end of the car (Fig. 1) may be loaded in the same manner as the right end thereof was loaded.

After the car has been loaded up to the portion adjacent the door in this manner, the portion I1 of the apparatus may be removed from the car and the portion I8 connected directly to the rail I 9, thereby to load this portion of the car, whereupon the portion I8 may be removed from the 0 car, after which the rail I9 will be removed and the portion I8 may be connected to the monorail system I 3 to finish loading the car.

Although a specific embodiment of the invention has been described hereinbefore, it Will be understood that it is subject to modifications without departing from the scope of the invention, which is to be limited only by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A material handling apparatus, a monorail whereon material may be carried, a wheeled carriage for supporting a section of said monorail, a boom mounted on the carriage for pivotally supporting a part of said monorail on said carriage, and means for bracing said carriage in a vehicle during the loading of said vehicle with said material.

2. A material handling apparatus including a monorail whereon material may be carried, said monorail being made up of a plurality of interconnectible sections, a wheeled reversible carriage for directing material on the monorail system in either of two directions and carrying a section of said monorail, a second wheeled carriage for supporting a section of said monorail, a boom pivotally attached to said second carriage for pivotally supporting a part of said monorail on said carriage, and means carried by said second carriage for fixing it in position in a vehicle to be loaded.

3. A material handling apparatus for use in conjunction with a monorail system whereon material may be carried including a section of monorail connectible directly to said monorail system, means for bracing said section in position in the door of a box car, a reversible wheeled carriage for supporting a section of monorail and connectible to said section positioned in the door of the box car, a plurality of removable sections connectible to said reversible carriage, a boom for supporting a section of monorail, and a boom supporting carriage connectible selectively to said sections or the reversible carriage or the section positioned in the door of the box car.

4. A material handling apparatusnior us' in conjunction with a monorail system whereon ma terial may be carried including asec'tion of monorail connectible directly to saidmonorail system,

means for bracing said section in position in the door of a box car, a reversible wheeled'carriage' for supporting a section'of monorail and connectible to said section positioned in the door of the box car, a plurality of removable sections con- 7 nec-tible tosaid reversiblecarriage, or boom for supportinga section of monorail, and a boom supporting; carriage connectibleselectivelyT to said sections or the reversible carriage or'the section positioned in the door of the box car, each of said carriages having means lth'ereon whereby they'maybe moved with respect'to their wheels to-aposition where they'rest on the floor of the boxcar. c 1

"5, In a 'material handling apparatusfor use in connection with a monorail system,; a wheeled carriage, a sectionrof monorailisupported by said Wheeled carriage and connectible to the monorail system, said section-of monorail being divided in two parts, one of'whic'h is pivotedwith respect to the other, and a bearing and spindle for pivotally supporting said section whereby the entire section may be moved to aposition at right angles to its operative position during transportation of 5 the carriage on its wheels. N p j 6. In 'a'materia1 handling apparatus for use in connection with a monorail system, a wheeled carriage, a section of monorail supported by said wheeled'carriage and connectible to said system, said section of monorail being divided in two parts; one of which is pivoted with respect'to the other, means for'pivotally supporting saidsection whereby the'en'tire sefction may be moved toa position at right angles to its operative position during transportation of the carriage, the means for pivotally supporting said section of rail comprising a rod' extending across said carriage, and a bearing 'membermounted on said rodat its mid portion'and fixed to said section of rail.

' I CrrARLE's L. 'SLUYTER.

CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION. Patent No. 2,25L 2s7. March 11, 19LL1.

- CHARLES L. SLUYTER.

It is hereby certified that error appears in the printed specification of the above numbered patent requiring correction as follows: Page LL, first column, line 10, claim it, for the word "or" read -a; and that the said Letters Patent should be read with this correction therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Office.

Signed and sealed this 1st day of July, A. D. l9l|.1.

Henry Van Arsdale,

(Seal) Acting Commissioner of Patents. 

